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October 8, 2019
AGU welcomes new Congressional Science Fellow, Dr. Kate Voss
The American Geophysical Union (AGU) is pleased to announce its newest Congressional Science Fellow, Dr. Katalyn Voss. Now in its 42nd year, AGU’s Congressional Science Fellow program places highly qualified and accomplished scientists, engineers, and other professionals in the office of an individual member of Congress or on a committee for a one-year assignment. Dr. Voss, who started her fellowship in September, has been placed within the office of Sen. …
October 2, 2019
Funding Update: Continuing Resolution keeps government open, appropriations continue
On Friday, 27 September, President Trump signed into law a continuing resolution (CR) that will keep the government funded through 21 November 2019. The CR extends 2019 funding levels into the start of Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, which began on 1 October. Although this means that science agencies will remain operational, while under a CR agencies cannot award new grants, plan new programs, or budget appropriately. Additionally, the CR can …
June 14, 2016
Congressman’s idea to privatize NWS forecasts gets icy reception among broadcast meteorologists.
By Dan Satterfield I’m hearing a lot of talk among my fellow forecasters about legislation (introduced by an Oklahoma congressman) that would privatize many forecast functions of the NWS. You might think that private sector meteorologists would support this, but almost every broadcast metr. I know has panned the idea. The quality of public weather forecasts is due to the cooperation between the public and private sector, and a survey of …
May 31, 2016
Geoscience research essential to national security, experts say
By Lauren Lipuma WASHINGTON, DC — Government investment in basic science research is critical to protecting U.S. national security, according to a group of government and academic researchers. Basic geoscience research has helped the U.S. develop nuclear weapons experts, protect satellites from space weather and manage critical water supplies, scientists said during a recent congressional briefing on Capitol Hill. The May 12 briefing highlighted national security as an important, but …
May 25, 2016
Funding Season is Open: Part 3
Thanks for staying with us as we continue to break down federal science funding for fiscal year 2017 (FY2017). To completely understand how the FY2017 landscape is evolving, I encourage you to check out the first and second parts of our funding Bridge posts. As you’ll recall, we previously laid out the good and bad of the Senate’s appropriations bill covering NASA, DOE’s Office of Science, NOAA, and the National …
August 4, 2015
Make the Most of Recess
Every August, Washington D.C. shuts down as members of both chambers of Congress return to their districts and everyone else in politics takes vacation; this is known as August recess. During August recess members will be focused on spending time with their families, visiting important sites in their district, and making themselves available to their constituents through coffeehouse chats, town halls, and other public events. August recess is a time …
November 21, 2014
Duck Season Now Open. What’s in Congress’ Sights?
The 113th Congress returned to session last week after the mid-term elections. Democrats are seeking to compromise while they still have leadership of the Senate, and Republicans want to tie up loose ends to make room for more ambitious legislation in the 114th Congress when they take control of both chambers. The hope is that the lame duck Congress will be productive in passing fiscal year 2015 (FY15) appropriations, confirming nominees for administrative posts, and selecting party leadership positions for congressional committees.
December 20, 2013
Senator Olympia Snowe Encourages Scientists to Make Their Voices Heard
The large auditorium was standing-room only for former Senator Olympia Snowe’s (R-Maine) address at AGU’s 2013 Fall Meeting. An ally with a history of standing up for many of AGU’s key issues on and off Capitol Hill, Senator Snowe resigned in January of 2013 over what she saw as an increasingly inept and hyper-partisan atmosphere in Congress. During her time in the Senate, Snowe positioned herself in the middle of …